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Ryan Hunter-Reay wins pole at Alabama

Ryan Hunter-Reay won his first pole of the IndyCar season with a first-place qualifying win at Alabama. Photo by LAT PHOTOGRAPHIC

Ryan Hunter-Reay won his first IndyCar pole since being crowned series champion in October, but the paddock was abuzz over a blocking penalty on Takuma Sato.

Sato was deemed to have inappropriately slowed in front of Justin Wilson during the second round of knockout qualifying. That cost the A.J. Foyt Racing driver his two fastest laps in qualifying, which means he’ll start 12th in Sunday’s Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama.

Wilson will start eighth.

Sato was upset with the penalty and went to race control to plead his case. He called the penalty “inconsistent.”

Wilson felt the penalty was deserved, which is why he went straight to race control as soon as he was eliminated from qualifying.

“I knocked on the door, they opened it and said ‘We’re already on it,’” Wilson said.

Will Power, the winner of the past two Barber races, will start second with rookie Tristan Vautier third.